Thank you!!!! I was just starting to research big boy twin beds but wasn't sure where to start!

Wow. Those are all really expensive.

i always had a double/full size bed growing up. if i had kids, i'd get them larger beds than twins, they just seem so tiny to me. just realizing that my two brothers (who were huge) had twin beds because they shared a room - how unfair that the smallest child (me) had the biggest bed (and her own room)!

you know, when i was a baby i had a i little crib when i was a baby but as soon as i grew out of it... twin size bed. Haha! Someone uncle just built rails for it (so i wouldn't roll out of it) and that was my bed forever. They took off the rails off after a few years but I remember having a twin bed until I moved out of the house on my own. Not that I didn;t whine and complain about it but as a grown up now I approve of my mother's spartan parenting skills. I never understood the whole giving kids different size beds. Or special fancy beds (race cars and princesses anyone?) Maybe if their are really tall but otherwise it takes all the thrill out of the kid bed/grown up bed right if passage. Kids are so spoiled these days.

I agree with maplesyrup - they will outgrow a twin bed sooner than you think. Double is a good bet if you have the space. My teenagers have a double and a queen, because they have sleepovers all the time (the girl) or are giant (the boy).

We're going the double bed route just because that was what was in the room before baby came along and the mattress and box spring are still in excellent condition (were a little-used guest bed). If we didn't have that, we'd most likely go the twin-bed route and that's what he'd sleep in until he left home. My 6'3" husband had a twin bed until he was about 25 with his toes hanging off the end for years. :)

The toddler is still in his crib and we are debating when to change him over. I've started researching beds so I know that they aren't cheap but I really wish there had been some different price points. Surely the IKEA route isn't the only price-friendly option.

We got an Ikea Malm full bed in white for our toddler. We figured it would last longer due to the bigger size and it makes reading stories before bed and nights when she needs us to stay a little while with her more comfortable for everyone.

For people in tight spaces, I think one of these convertible desk/beds is a pretty darn good idea. Sure at $1600 it's a bit pricey, but probably worth it to save space.

http://hiddenbed.ca/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRkZFvKxiF4

All this talk about "outgrowing a twin" is making me believe America really is super-sized. I had a twin until I left for college and so did all my friends (who were much wealthier than I was, since I went to an expensive private school)!

People just had trundle bed set-ups for sleepovers or *gasp* used sleeping bags.

My kid is still in a toddler bed and both of us fit in there when I read to her at night. And she's in the 99th percentile for height and I'm 5'6" and can almost lie totally flat.

Personally, I love the Jenny Lind raspberry bed.

If you want the bed to last into teenage years, it's probably safest to avoid a footboard. That way your feet can hang off then end of the bed if/when you get to be a certain height.

Outgrowing a twin? America IS super sized. In more ways than one. ;P Our 50's ranch does not accommodate anything larger than twin, nor to the cabinets hold today's GIANT dinner plate.

Fyi my son who OUTGREW his twin bed is 17, 6'3 and 165 lbs. he is not supersized, and I think that's a crappy thing to say.

Also, the idea that kids are spoiled because they don't have to sleep with their feet hanging off the bed is hilarious to me. Gotta love all the people on this site who think having less/smaller makes you superior.

we just bought the malm twin beds in white for our 4-year-old twin boys. we are using regular twin mattresses and boxsprings with them and they look just adorable. the boys love walking on the side "balance beams" or driving their toy cars up and down them—and i love how neat and tidy they look together in the room. and for $89? they can outgrow them next year if they want.

I researched this for far too long when switching my older son (now 4) from the crib to a bed. We went with Room & Board's Riley twin as it has the option when there are two to stack as bunk beds, which we may do when the our younger son (now 2) is 6 (recommended age by APA). I like the option of having two twins or bunk beds. The boys like that idea, too. The price point isn't friendly at all, but they are well-made, simple, look good and I know I will still be happy looking at those beds in years to come.
http://www.roomandboard.com/rnb/product/detail.do?productGroup=19661

Wow... there must be a lot of short people. I'd outgrown an ordinary single (as we call them here) by the time I was 15. Luckily, My Dad was able to restore my Grandparent's original double bed for me - my feet still hung off the end, but at least I could sleep diagonally! The queen bed only came along when I bought a bed with my own money so that my 6'5 (now ex-)boyfriend could actually fit on it without being kicked off!

I never did outgrow my twin bed. I only ever got a bigger bed when I bought it because I liked the frame and could fit it in my room. I'm only five feet tall though.

My husband is 6'3" and he slept on a extra-long twin (king single? not a double though) until he left home because he needed the length. He was too long for a double though and that would just be width one person doesn't need? So I don't get

I wouldn't assume a twin is automatically outgrowable. Ain't nothing wrong with being 6'3" but it's not average height, it's not something every family is lax to not plan around.

Maybe not for bigger kids, but our three year old still needs mama and papa at night sometimes, so we would rather have a double. Not only would it be more comfy for us to bunk in with him some nights, but we don't have a spare room, so we could put up guests in his room and move him to a sleeping bag or in with us. Bigger beds have greater flexibility for everyone. Alas, his room is tiny so we cram in his twin bed.

Kids must be shocked when, having grown up with a full/double bed, they are faced with a XL twin in a college dorm. Somehow we always managed to fit 2 people on a dorm bed ;)

I'm surprised they didn't mention the Kura bed from Ikea, I love that I can buy hardware and hang curtains on the rails so that the summer sun doesn't wake up my sun early and that I can flip it and turn it into a low loft with storage underneath when he gets older.

It's hard to believe how expensive these are. I went pretty much straight to a twin after the crib (was part of what used to be bunk beds that my older brothers had) and then to a full bed (another hand-me-down) around the age of 12. As far as I can remember even my crib was a hand-me-down. I only got a brand new bed when I was about 17 and asked for one for my birthday.

I say at the least go for a twin and maybe even a trundle since it can sleep guests easily.

I shared a twin bed with my 6'3" husband for about two years when we first moved in together. I mean, you have to cuddle but it's not THAT small. Certainly not so small that any teenager is going to "outgrow" a twin. I don't think there's anything wrong with whatever size bed you want to get your kids, I just don't get the whole "outgrowing" thing.

And I have to say, can we have some variation in price points? Come on, the only decent twin bed under $449 is from IKEA? Really? I like IKEA but I know there have to be some other cool options out there.

My son sleeps on a built in loft with a twin mattress. All this talk about "outgrowing" makes me wonder. He's only 10 and is already 5'1" and wears a man's size 10 shoe. Maybe I should be squirreling away some money for a longer bed for when he gets too tall for his twin.

I bought both my kids full size beds from West Elm. They were around $600 each including the headboard. They look great and are nice and low to the ground. They also don't look too kid like. When we have guests they can also fit a couple comfortably which is an added bonus.

I love that junk in the trunk bed!

My son had a twin up till age 16. When he hit 5'11" the summer before his sophmore year in HS, he wrangled himself a double bed (my folks provided a spare bed frame, second hand box spring and an inexpensive mattress (not IKEA, but similar). I came home from work to his old bed sitting in the dining room and he and his girl friend and buddies painting. (I'd agreed to the paint, the bed was a surprise LOL).

The price of these beds (except the Malm) blows me away. We got a twin size mattress, box spring, and plain unadorned steel frame for my son's room about two years ago for something on the order of $200 total. I would have preferred a slat bed like Ikea sells instead of a box spring, but we didn't have an Ikea in our city.

I can't see spending many hundreds of dollars on a fancy bed that a child will use for 10-15 years. Now, for the master bedroom, buying for a lifetime (hopefully), that kind of money seems more justified.

Buy whatever fits your budget and lifestyle but if you can afford it, why buy junk for your kids? I'd rather have my kids sleep on a real, non-toxic matress and real wood rather than off-gassing nastiness.

I really needed this a couple of months ago, but am glad to see it covered. We went with the Sparrow because I saw other Oeuf furniture and thought it was built really well. Anyhoo, I do think it's funny about the outgrowing of twin beds. We don't have room for a full, but I did grow up with one because my mom co-slept until I told her to get out. I'm short, so I can't speak to growing out of it. It was nice, but yes, I agree with KATALYST, they'll just go off to experience a XLongTwin when they go off to college. So why get used to the space?

Ummm, I still sleep in a twin. While this isn't a long time solution, when my SO and I visit each other, we sleep on a twin together. (When we're not long distance, we'll get a full)

My parents have always slept on a full together, and before you start thinking we're a tiny family, my dad is 6'2", I (female) am 5'10", and my mom is 5'6". Nor are we built slender.

If you're over 6', you'll need a long twin. Other than that, a twin is perfectly acceptable.